Shamed journalist

I read LA Weekly, and I grow to despise my work for the Spartan Scroll. Don't get me wrong, high school journalism was the best experience. I believe it lit a passion in me. But to compare my own writing style to that of the Weekly's journalists I want to burn every news story I have ever written. I don't even want to compare my grammar mistakes to the flawless and unparalleled composition of a longform Weekly piece, for it makes me cringe; but I am also very regretful of my shameless promotion of the school. I will point out that the Weekly is a way slanted publication, but they are a counterculture type news source that checks & balances power. I, on the other hand, feel like I was a component in extending and maintaining power. I kept peace, kept readers under a lull. I endorsed the big Schurr High School dictatorship. I guess I'm using unfittingly strong political words. But really, I do feel actually rather strongly about my loathing right now.

Our paper supposedly wasn't censored, but we had to be very careful. We were far from the provocative paper that La Serna High School's was for that one Sex issue. I know that our chariness came from a striving to prevent from being shut down or anything drastic like that, but I think that I myself took it to the extreme, that I was trying to promote the school, and make it seem as though it was a perfectly-well administrated school. I mean, I did report on graffiti, but it seemed that my stories always cast favorable light on the school. As if I were trying to hide flaws. I don't know. In the beginning of my "career" as a Reporter, I was always sure to try to get both sides of the story. But as I moved up as Assistant News and finally News Editor, I guess I felt a greater responsibility. That it was my job not to incite anything. That it was my duty to portray administration in a light students would--revere, almost. That's quite shameful. I guess now looking back I feel like it was propaganda.

This segues into media. Anderson always said that four (?) people control the world--the media head honchos. Essentially, they do. They control what information gets out to the masses. I've known that for several years. But I am barely now starting to nitpick at it. I'm beginning to understand and extensively comprehend the consequences of that. Hard news as we define it does not exist. As someone that controlled the (selectively placed) content of a news article, that was in a newspaper with a circulation of 2,000 (or was it three?), I gave someone information that was based on my own interpretation.

Read up Why History Matters. It's a great piece. Different people have different interpretations of everything. So media is all phony bogus stuff. The sad thing is. I still want to eventually establish myself a niche in the midst of that phony bogus stuff.

This post didn't develop as well as I would have wanted to. I'm getting lazy.

This is added at 12:16 a.m.
So my real point. The impetus that compelled me to post again was this--(I totally forgot about it in my journalism ramble)--There is, in San Francisco, conflict between human rights activists and pro-China"ists" because the activists want to embarrass Beijing by protesting the Olympics torch race thing. Mainly they are protesting grievances against Tibet & Darfur. I have nothing against the causes. Fo'serious. I have tremendous respect for activists. Any and all, for devoting their lives to a singular cause. But come on, why are these incidences of nefarious social injustice so much more publicized than others. One may give credit to activists for successfully achieving awareness. But honestly, I believe it is more the star power that is involved. Darfur and Tibet have gotten a generous portion of media attention only because of the celebrities that are supporting these causes. What about Ghana? All of Africa, practically. It's all way messed up over there. But nobody cares? Why these causes?

And ask ourselves, what has happened to Freedom of Information. How did media morph into such an ugly lopsided monster.